NATIVE SHOES REMIX™ X IRINA FLORE
Remix Maison
The collaborative project re-imagines functional design with circular materials.
Multidisciplinary designer Irina Flore is embarking on a collaborative project entitled Remix Maison with purpose-led footwear brand, Native Shoes and its proprietary material: Native Shoes Remix™. The artist and brand have partnered to design and develop sculptural furniture made with materials created from reclaimed and repurposed footwear. The collection features eye-catching designs that reflect the present and future way of living, while questioning one’s everyday actions and needs.
With the intention of creating functional and contemporary designs that replace traditional materials with more environmentally-conscious resources, Flore developed her sculptural structures exclusively using metal and Native Shoes Remix™. Native Shoes Remix™ is a combination of EVA and rubber, the main components of the brand’s line of injection-molded footwear. These primarily mono-material shoes are collected at the end of their useful life, cleaned and ground, giving them renewed life for new projects and products.
Both environmentally conscious and practical, Flore and Native Shoes’ first Remix Maison designs are sculptural benches designed for an entryway and built to serve multiple functions: a seat, a tray area for small items, a shoe holder, or a coat hanger. These sculptures’ various forms are inspired by Flore’s conceptual drawings and their functions fluctuate slightly from one design to another.
The materials and their locality define this project. Native Shoes Remix™ is locally fabricated in Vancouver BC, with materials that can be repeatedly repurposed into new objects. Circular in nature, this recycling process and resulting project bring awareness to the fact that each reclaimed shoe can become a piece of art, rather than waste.
Forward looking, Native Shoes seeks to expand its role as a responsible manufacturer to all territories in which the brand has a presence. Working with creative designers, innovative manufacturers, and its Native Shoes Remix™ material, the brand will continue breathing new life into products that have otherwise reached the end of their useful life while contributing to culture and art-enhancing projects.
The project was launched at IDS Vancouver 2022 and featured in Design Milk, Gray Magazine, Azure magazine, Western Living, Vancouver Sun, Nuvo Magazine and more.
2022 Gray Awards Winner for the category Collaboration and Gray Awards Finalist for the category Design for Good.
